Building a cannister light

[detroit diver]

Hi all,

I'm just about to dive into a project to build a cannister light. Bought a 10W HID light head and goodman handle from Halcyon, and I own the Dive light handbook from Airspeed press. I've decided on a 4 inch cannister size, but the length will depend on the batteries that I pick.

Has anyone done what I'm trying to do, and if so, can you make any suggestions to help me avoid the pitfalls?

Thanks,

Jack

 

[Uncle Pug]

Originally posted by detroit diver
Bought a 10W HID light head and goodman handle from Halcyon, and I own the Dive light handbook from Airspeed press.

How much did that cost you?
How much do you expect to save?
Will you warranty your cannister?

 

[detroit diver]

The lighthead and handle was 200.00. I think I can do it for under 300.00. Best price I've seen was around 530.00 or so.

Yes, I warranty anything that I build! If it breaks, I fix it. And I give myself a money back guarantee!

But that wasn't my question.

 

[Uncle Pug]

Originally posted by detroit diver
But that wasn't my question.

Nah...but it was my way of giving a round-about answer....
Pitfalls:
Spending more to make something than to buy it ready made....
Making a defective product with no warranty recourse....

I am not saying that you will fall into either of the above pits....
But others have....
Heard of one guy that made three before he got one that didn't leak and end up destroying the light head by leaking back up through the cord....
He said it was worth it and he would have done it all over again even though it cost him a bunch more that buying the EE version...

I have a fairly complete shop.... and the airspeed book too...
We bought the EE pro 4 10w HIDs....
I'm a chicken....

 

[detroit diver]

I knew where you were going with this. Although the cost savings are fairly substantial, that's not why I'm doing the project. Just something to fill some time. I'm also building an Oxy analyzer.

Better than sitting on my butt for the winter and watching TV.

 

[Uncle Pug]

Originally posted by detroit diver
I knew where you were going with this.

I knew you knew....
Hope it works out ....
We had to send our HIDs into EE because the bulbs were failing to start after just a few dives...

Come to find out there really was nothing wrong with th bulbs or the ballast...

When you switch an HID ballast off you need to wait until the charge dissipates before you can restrike. Using thick dry gloves we were getting a slight bounce in the switch when turning the lights on... enough to energize the ballast and cause it not to light the bulb. Solution is to *crisply* snap the switch on. If it fails to fire...turn it off and wait 10 seconds and try again.

I mention this because the problem has nothing to do with ballast and bulb but the switch & guard...which part you are going to make/install. Make sure there is enough room inside the guard to get your fingers in for a positive switching action... but don't let the switch handle stick up above the guard or you will accidentally switch it off during a dive....


There...does that qualify as a postive contribution????

What do I win????

 

[detroit diver]

Anything off the top shelf...

Funny you mention the switch thing. I was diving w/ a friend about 3 weeks ago, and he fired the light on the surface before entry. Must have hit the switch or shut it off, and when he tried to restart it it didn't fire. As he was doing a more critical dive than myself-(long story), I let him use my halogen light. Took us a couple of minutes to switch in the water. When I hit the switch on the HID which I now had on my harness, it fired right up!

Must have been the delay you were speaking about, thanks. Good to remember.

 

[tombiowami]

I was looking into this a while back, here is a guy who sells plans on ebay


http://cgi.ebay.com/aw-cgi/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=1053140127

and here is a site of some do it yourselfers

http://insel.heim.at/malediven/350052/miked1_e.htm

I have seen another couple sites in the past with people who have made them. I will side with Pug on this one, I have a long history of making stuff to get out cheaper and then messing it up and ending up buying it in the end. So now I generally just do that.

I asked GUE but have not heard back if they have ever considered a cannister light "for the rest of us" that are cheaper, something like a pistol grip but transferred into a can design, and would be less than several hundred bux. I would love one of those HID babies but just does not make monetary sense for the amount of night diving I do when I can get a good pistol grip light for 30 or 40 dollars.

Tommy

 

[Uncle Pug]

Originally posted by tombiowami
I would love one of those HID babies but just does not make monetary sense for the amount of night diving I do when I can get a good pistol grip light for 30 or 40 dollars.

Tommy

Hi Tommy,

Here is the deal.
Lights are not just for night diving anymore. They are primarily for communication between buddies.

How many times have you been frustrated on a dive trying to keep track of your dive buddy. It is such a pain that many just dive *same ocean buddies*.

When my buddy and I dive we are in constant contact through the passive communication of our HID beams. I know right where he is and vise versa. If he wants to get my attention he just makes a figure 8 in around my beam because he knows that is where I am looking. I turn around to see what he wants. If I want to signal an OOA I just wave my beam wildly back and forth across his beam and before I can even turn to face him his regulator is out and being donated to me. If he wants to signal *OK?* he doesn't have to gain eye contact and then do the thumb index finger bit...he just draws a circle with his beam around my beam.... and I circle back to answer.

Getting HID lights on a goodman handle is the one of the best things we have done! It has made our diving so much more fun and safe too. We use them on every dive.... especially during the day when it takes the strong beam of the HID to been seen.

Several points to consider:
You need a buddy for this to work.
Your buddy needs to have a light too.
Your buddy's light needs to be the same kind and power.
You & your buddy need to understand that the light beam is for communication and keep bringing them into one another's field of view.
HID's produce a visible beam.

We dove with a fellow who had a 50watt halogen and we couldn't see his beam.... only the spot on the bottom. Our little 10 watt HIDs were brighter and produced a visible beam all the way from the light head out to the spot on the bottom. It was very difficult keeping track of him. That was on a night dive. During the day he just disappears *off the radar screen*.

I would give up my doubles.... I would even give up my BP/Wing if I had to.... before I would give up my HID.

 

[bwollard]

detroit diver

I am also interested in your project as I have thought about doing the same thing. If you end up building one, let us know how it turns out. It seems by the lack of usefull reponses, you will be the first. Good Luck!!!